Q: Anyone attempt vacationing at a hotel with your bunch? Which hotel chains let more than two little ones stay in your room or have great yet affordable family suites? Any other tips or alternative suggestions are so welcome.
A: This answer will differ depending on your budget, the age of your kids, where you're going and who's going with you. If you're able to spring for a suite, great. If you're able to get two rooms, even better! Sometimes bringing an aunt, uncle or grandparents help because then you can spread the kids up a bit and still have a place to hang (with adjoining rooms) after 8 p.m.
Places like an Embassy Suites or Homestead Suites give you a little more wiggle room since you can at least put the kids on the sleeper sofa, pack 'n play or the floor (depending on their age) and you and hubby can escape (into the other room) to actually watch a movie, read or hang out without having to tip toe around too much. Embassy Suites usually throws in free happy hour and breakfast which is a bonus. Even a hotel with a balcony often give some options for after you put your kids to bed.
Unless you're staying at someone's house, and many times that can be even worse, you're going to be crammed it and you're going to have to be flexible and have a sense of humor.
Remember that lodging away from home, in the long run, is a growing experience for everyone. Kids need to learn how to adapt to new situations. If you anticipate it will be a horrible experience for all, stay a brief amount of time and head back. Sometimes being on the road is better than being crammed into a small space with multiple kids....at least until they're older.
Get your gear loaded up because you probably need extra equipment to lodge your Bunch for the night or two. Bring the bed. We're big fans of the pack n' play. But we just saw this inflatable toddler bed featured at Cool Mom Picks. Genius! It might help reduce the number of portable cribs you have to stuff in the car. Sleeping bags are great too. The roll-away beds can be more uncomfortable than you think and kids think sleeping on the floor is an adventure. Then you can get away with sleeping more kids. And don't forget the Noise machine. If you don't have one, get one. It makes sleeping away from home easier if you can drown out the noise.
We'd love to hear from those who travel around which hotel chains you always rely on for your Bunch.
I just spent 2 nights in a hotel room w/ my 2 month old, my 2 year old, and my 3 1/2 year old. I was super stressed about it, but it ended up working out great. We weren't able to get a suite, but we did have an adjoining room where my parents were staying. We put the baby in his swing (where he always sleeps) in the far corner so he wouldn't wake the others when he woke up to nurse at night. DH and I got the bed, my 3 yo got the small pull out bed that was in the love seat and my 2 year old slept on a bed made of 3 blankets on the floor next to him. I brought box fan with us b/c it gets way louder than our white noise machine. We were away for a wedding so both nights the kids were up later than normal so they were tired when it was bed time. they all went down fairly easily. When the big ones got up in the morning I took them to breakfast while DH stayed w/ the snoozing baby. At nap time the baby and 2 yo slept in their beds while the rest of us hung out in the room next door. If you're driving, I suggest taking anything you might need to be comfortable. (like a big baby swing and a box fan) :)
Posted by: Kelly | Jul 14, 2011 at 02:46 PM
Getting a suite is the best plan, but when we haven't been able to do that, I've put one pack-n-play in the bathroom and the other in what is typically a closet "nook/cubby" area. Not ideal....but at least it gives the kids and us some separation. However, more often than not, we are forced to turn off the TV so the kids can fall asleep so it's a good opportunity to hit the hay early...an opportunity that rarely presents itself at home, even if it is only 8pm.
Posted by: Amanda | Jul 14, 2011 at 03:57 PM
Well, this was posted while we were on vacation with our 3-yr-old, 1-yr-old, and 6mo-old! Here's my big tip: once they're 1 or so, switch to TENTS. Like the Peapod, for a brand-name version, but there are many different ones available now. They provide more structure (less running off! you can zip it if you need to!) for kids, more security for them (because of being enclosed), more privacy (blocked vision), they quiet noise, and go on the floor (often with air mattresses included, or you can use folded over extra blankets, which hotels nearly always have). They pack up TINY as well. Much, much better than a pack-n-play. We've been using them since our eldest was 1, and our kids love them. I love that I can easily hear if a child is climbing out of them, compared to a bed or plain floor mattress, but they don't actually keep the kid completely restrained like a play yard.
Posted by: Julie Fuller | Jul 24, 2011 at 09:44 PM
When we go away we either stay at Embassy Suites or we go to vrbo.com and find a rental house. You can usually find a house for the same price of a hotel. Obviously the house option is our favorite for several reasons. We found even though Embassy Suites is very family friendly we still had people bangning on the wall in an attempt to help our youngest fall asleep :) Our favorite options are 1. House 2. Condo 3. Hotel. One thing we found really important regardless of where you stay is to be consistent with your nighttime routine.
Posted by: Emily | Jul 27, 2011 at 09:40 AM
Nice, and thanks for sharing this info with us.Good Luck!
Posted by: moncler doudoune | Nov 26, 2011 at 09:52 PM
Do you have a hotel to recommend? We plan to make a trip next month.
Posted by: first class airline tickets | Dec 12, 2011 at 01:49 AM